Glass cutter



Patented Oct. 28, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE GLASS CUTTER Murray 0. Eldredge, Chicago, Ill. Application January 22, 1941, Serial No. 375,503

2 Claims.

The invention has for an object to effect simplification in the structure and manner of production of my device that a common glass cutter with practical arrangement for renewal of the wheel may be placed upon the market at a price which will make it a saleable article. As is well understood, these devices are ordinarily sold for ten cents, and experience has shown that this is all that the public will pay for such an article. Therefore, every departure'from the simple glass cutter without arrangement for renewing the wheel involves an expense in production which absorbs a substantial part of the retail price that otherwise would be a part of the profit. Another element affecting the possibility of selling such an article is the fact that stores able to retail such an article, require it to be sold at wholesale at a price which will enable them to make a very substantial pro-fit in an endeavor to make up for losses on other items, and therefore any improvements in glass cutters of this general type, which represent a material advance in cost, will cause a disproportionate loss in sales to distributing houses.

It is therefore an important aim of my invention to enable the production of a glass cutter.

with arrangements for renewing the Wheel, which will be extremely low in cost and involve a minimum of expense in addition to that of production of a plain glass cutter without wheel-renewing structure.

It is an important aim of the invention to evolve a device, the manipulation of which in renewing the wheel will be extremely simple, so that the ordinary person without special tools may easily renew the wheel in a cutter embodying my invention. A further important aim of the invention is to present such a cutter which, while having the wheel removable ly without the use of special tools, will yet be secured against accidental dislodgment or displacement of the wheel, from proper operative position.

It is a still further aim of importance to enable the production of the cutter body and quickly mountable wheel and axle assembly by the use of a minimum amount of material, and enabling the production of the special features by the use of ordinary machinery or methods in the manufacture of the article; and with a minimum number of machines for assembly operation. Reduction in the amount of material involved in the special wheel mounting is an important attainment of the invention, since any increase of special materials in such devices will involve rising costswhich cannot be absorbed in ordinary practice, and also affect the weight of the article which, necessarily, must be at a minimum in order to enable the manipulation of the article in a conventional Way.

manually and quickmay be varied considerably without Additional objects, advantages and features of invention reside in the construction, arrangement and combination of parts involved in the embodiment of the invention, as will be more readily understood from the accompanying description and drawing, wherein,

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a glass cutter embodying m invention, somewhat enlarged.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary elevation of the head of the cutter, of the right hand side in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a similar view showing the Wheel and its mounting in place.

Figure 4 is an end view of the article.

Figure 5 is a back edge view partly in section.

Figure 6 is a transverse section through the head on the line 6-6, of Figure 3, greatly enlarged.

Figure 7 is a detail perspective view of the wheel and its axle or mounting, detached from the head.

Referring nowmore particularly to the drawing, there is illustrated a cutter device comprising a body portion It, with a conventional shape, including the head I I, having the usual series of notches 2 at one edge, of graduated width to so as to provide a shoulder H5 at the outer end of the recess 14, the shoulder constituting in eifect a continuation of one end surface of the recess. The head is generally rectangular in cross section, this involving a usual flat back side 16 upon the head, and two lateral flat surfaces l1 and H3 at the right and left, respectively; and the end surface I9 of the head is a flatsurface disposed at an angle of substantially fiftyfive degrees to the plane of the back face It, although this angle affecting the merits or function of the device. The faces l1 and I8 are parallel in the present instance, and formed therebetween in a parallel plane, there is an end slot 20, opening on both the back face l6 and the end face l9, in accordance with familiar practice in the art. One side of the head adjacent the slot may be thicker than the other, if desired.

The face l9 stops short of the intersection with the face N5 of the head, a flattened portion being thus provided in which a transverse slot 2| is formed, opening through both the faces I! and I8, the portion of the slot in the material between the slot 20 and side of the head at one side of the article being formed with a slight enlargement 22 midway between the planes of the lateral space of the head, and the plane of the adjacent surface of the slot 20. At the opposite side of the head a bore 23 is formed longitudinally in the head, the diameter of the bore being equal to the transverse width of the slot 2|, and throughout the length of this bore, a narrow slot 24 is formed therefrom through the lateral space of the head, this being the face I! in the present instance. This slot is preferably extended slightly beyond the inner end of the bore, the bottom of the slot sloping outwardly to the face I! of the head.

A removable and replaceable wheel and axle assembly is provided, consisting of an axle member 25, which may be formed of wire of suitable hardness and diameter, and a wheel 26 of conventional form receiving one end portion of the wire therethrough. The axle is formed with a simple long arm 21, and a short arm 28 at right angles thereto, the junction being as acute as practicable in the production of the article. The extremity of the arm 28 is formed with a head portion 29, the wheel 26 being engaged upon the short arm, and the head 29 serving to prevent dislodgment of the wheel from the arm 28. The axle is of uniform size throughout, except for the head 29, and the wheel is loosely revoluble upon the arm 28. While the arm 21 is shown of rectilinear form in the present instance, it may have a slight curve or other convolution therein, if desired. The wire of which the axle is formed is of a diameter equal to the width of the transverse slot 2|, and the diameter of the bore 23 in the head is slightly less, so that the arm 21 will fit frictionally in the bore 23 if the arm 21 is of rectilinear form, and in the event that it is slightly curved, it will in consequence lie slightly against the side of the bore 23 so as to hold the axle frictionally in operative position, as will subsequently appear. The length of the arm 28 is such that when the arm 21 is inserted in the bore 23 from the extreme end of the head II and the wheel and axle assembly forced inwardly longitudinally upon the head, the arm 28 may be entered in the transverse slot 2|, with its head portion 29 engaged in the enlargement 22 of the slot 2|. The length of the arm 21 is slightly less than the length of the bore 23 from the extreme inner end of the bore to the slot 2|, so that as shown in Figure 3, the extremity of the arm 21 will stop short of the inner end of the bore 23, as indicated at 30. The slot 24 being narrower than the diameter of the bore 23, the stem or arm 2'! of the axle will thus be held securely in the bore, but its end 30 may be readily engaged by any pointed instrument, such as the end of a pen-knife, small nail, or other pointed object or tool, so that such inserted article or implement may be thrust against the end of the arm 21 and the axle forced longitudinally from the head I I.

In the use of the article, in cutting glass the device may be manipulated, and will function, in the same manner as the conventional glass cutter, and when the wheel 26 requires removal, the cutter handle is held in the left hand of the user, while a pointed instrument is inserted at the sloping end of the slot 24, and moved longitudinally outward therein, with the point projected into the bore 23, so that it finally engages the ends 30 ofthe arm 21. Longitudinal movement of the inserted point is then continued manually, until the arm 2'! is thrust entirely from the bore and out through the end of the head I I,

no manual grasping of the wheel and axle assembly being required, but being of infinitesimal cost and not warranting recovery or resharpening, it is permitted to fall away, for disposal as trash, a single movement of the finger point being thus efiective in starting and complete removal of the dull wheel and its axle. A new wheel and axle assembly may now be introduced and placed upon the head from which the old assembly has been removed, this being effected manually by grasping the wheel and arm portion 28 between the thumb and forefinger while the body of the cutter is held as first mentioned, and the end of the arm 21 inserted in the outer end of the bore 23 while the arm 21 is held as nearly as practicable in accurate alinement with the bore, and thrust longitudinally thereinto. After the arm 21 has been inserted until the wheel 26 comes into proximity with the head H, the inserting movement may be discontinued momentarily while the wheel 26 is adjusted on the arm 28 so as to properly enter the slot 20, and the arm 28 adjusted in proper alinement with the slot 2| across the end of the head, after which by pressure of a fingernail or a fiat edged instrument or other article against the base of the arm 28, the latter may be moved together with the arm 27 further into the head, until the arm 28 becomes disposed properly in the slot 2|, with the wheel 26 freely revoluble thereon in the slot 20.

While I have described an embodiment of my invention with great particularity, it will be appreciated that this is exemplary, and that various changes in the construction, arrangement and form of parts, substitution of equivalents and otherwise may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention, as set forth more particularly in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A glass cutter of the general character described, comprising a head portion having a wheel slot on its end, a longitudinal bore formed in the head parallel to the slot, a transverse slot on the end of the head and a longitudinal slot in the side of the head communicating throughout with the bore, and being of a width narrower than the diameter of the bore, the bore and the last named slot opening through the end of the head, an axle member having an arm fitting snugly in the bore for manual sliding movement therein, and having a lateral arm setting in said transverse slot of the head, and a wheel loosely revoluble on the last named arm of the axle.

2. A glass cutter of the general character described, comprising a head portion having a wheel slot on its end, a longitudinal bore formed in the head parallel to the slot, a transverse slot on the end of the head and a longitudinal slot in the side of the head communicating throughout with the bore, and being of a width narrower than the diameter of the bore, the bore and the last named slot opening through the end of the head, an axle member having an arm fitting snugly in the bore for manual sliding movement therein, and having a lateral arm setting in said transverse slot of the head, the arm having a slightly enlarged head, the transverse slot of the head portion being formed with an enlargement to receive the enlarged head of the arm, and a wheel loosely revoluble on the last named arr? of the axle and positioned within the wheel slo MURRAY C. ELDREDGE. 

